Thursday, February 26, 2009

Got a little better look at Fluffy's neck yesterday, although I didn't have my camera handy. It looks like there is a wound of some sort, but the area is clean and dry (and devoid of fur, which is why I could see it), so I think that whatever happened, it's healing up. Will keep an eye on it, as far as possible.

If you watch PBS, you've probably seen their commercial which includes the phrase "Tigers have striped skin, not just striped fur." That goes for domestic cats, too. Fluffy's coat is black and his skin (visible at the neck right now) is a charcoal gray. When Minnie, my indoor kitty, was spayed, her tummy was shaved and I could tell exactly where her different colored furs normally grow: pink where white fur goes, orangy-tan under ginger fur, and a medium brown under brown fur. Such a cute, multi-colored belly....

Re: the diet, I've lost another two pounds--I'm down eight so far, and my jeans are getting loose!

Sunday, February 22, 2009

Just finished balancing my checkbook and updating my February budget and made an astonishing discovery--I'm not in the hole! I've got $37 left for groceries for this last week of the month, which is plenty for me. That hasn't happened in ages!

I checked my current bank statement and discovered the reason for this fine state of affairs: when I started my diet, I cut way back on meals out. During this statement period, I went out 4 times. The previous month, it was 12 times. The month before that, it was 9--including a whole pizza, which is twice as bad. And that's only the charges on my debit card; it doesn't include whatever I may have spent in cash.

Since my "big" meal of the day is at lunch now and I take that to work with me, there's no question at the end of the day about what I'm having for supper--it's always a Special K protein bar and fruit. No longer do I have that daily internal struggle about whether or not to swing by Wendy's or wherever after work for a naughty fast-food meal because I "deserve" it and I'm so tired and blah blah rationalizing blah.

I thought surely I would be spending way more than usual on groceries now that I'm buying lots of fruits & veggies & special diet food--and I am. But cutting down so much on meals out sure makes up the difference!

Who knew that when I went on a diet food-wise, I was also going on a diet money-wise? Neat discovery....

Saturday, February 21, 2009

This is the best I could do getting a shot of Fluffy's neck yesterday. I think that leaf-shaped thing hanging down is, in fact, a leaf hanging from what looks like a clump of matted fur. I still can't tell if his neck is hurt. Tried to get close to him for a look this afternoon, but he skittered away, as usual, scared off when I stepped on crunchy, drought-dead, pampas grass leaves.

BTW, his ear is tipped because I trapped him and had him neutered through a local cat-rescue group; "tipping" is a signal to other TNRing folk that this particular feral has been fixed.

Here's the full pic I got that closeup from. Handsome ball of fluff, isn't he?I had an audience for this photo session, of course: Stumpy and Leo outside, and Minnie inside. Here are some more pix from the "shoot".

Above left is Stumpy with his healing paw. The smudges you see are just dirt. The pic at right shows Stumpy's robust figure. He's a big ol' boy--not fat, just a big, well-muscled tom (well, former tom!).

Stumpy again; you can tell by his face that he's been through the tomcat wars.

Leo also turned up to see what was going on. He has a short attention span, though--the contents of the food shelter proved much more interesting. That's a slab of cement on top of the shelter, BTW--we've got fierce winds in this neck o' the woods.

Minnie kept a close eye on the proceedings from inside the house. I offered to let her out, but....

Friday, February 20, 2009

I've got my eye on another of my ferals--Fluffy came fairly close (well, within 10 feet) yesterday and I think I spotted a problem around his neck, like an old, too-tight collar or a twist of wire. It was hard to tell because he's a black longhair and the whatever-it-was also is black. I tried to edge a little closer, but Fluffy was too skittish and stayed well out of reach. I'll try to get a better look at his neck, but I don't know how I'll ever get hold of him to fix the problem (if there is one).

Friday, February 13, 2009

Seems like it's been a long ol' week, and I'm glad to see it drawing to a close. Let's see, what all's happened...?

Stumpy's paw is almost normal again, and he's developed a little "pash" for me--whenever he turns up, he rubs on my legs and lets me pet him just like Leo does. He doesn't care for headrubs like Leo, though--Leo likes to lay his head against my leg and have me cup & scrub his little head for a bit. Stumpy isn't into that.

Minnie is still playing with her catnip carrot. At just over a month since she got it, that's a record for her! And I'm convinced she's reacting to the catnip inside. Sure wish I could get a video of her wrestling, biting, kicking, and otherwise going nutzoid with her little carrot--it's a scream!

I've lost a couple more pounds. I'm having veggies with beans plus fruit for lunch everyday (I think the last meat I had was a grilled chicken wrap from Sonic last Saturday) and a protein bar plus a little more fruit for supper. Breakfast is cereal and--you guessed it--fruit. :) As Sid the Sloth said in Ice Age, "It's hard to get fat on a vegan diet." It also helps in losing weight, too, which is good, because, unlike Manny the Wooly Mammoth, I can't say of my rotundity, "It's all this hair. It makes me look...poofy."

Other than that, I've just been working away, very grateful to have a good job and a mortgage that won't be foreclosed on me. Amen!